Using BIM ( Building Information Technology) to address traditional knowledge
BIM, LiDAR and Vernacular Intelligence: The LLINDAR Project (GRETA)
The LLINDAR project, developed within the framework of GRETA between 2024 and 2025, proposes a rigorous exploration of how digital technologies can contribute to the understanding and transmission of vernacular architectural knowledge. Focused on the masos of Cap de Creus, and particularly on case studies such as Mas Bufadors in Port de la Selva and Mas Marès in Roses, the work situates itself at the intersection between heritage, territory, and digital representation.
The project begins with the acquisition of high-resolution LiDAR scans, generating dense point clouds that capture the built remains and their surrounding landscape with a high degree of precision. In the case of Mas Bufadors, the resulting model does not isolate architecture from context but records a continuous field where stone walls, voids, topography, and vegetation coexist. This condition is fundamental, as it allows the architectural object to be understood not as an autonomous entity but as part of a broader environmental and territorial system.
From this initial dataset, the work advances through a process of interpretation that transforms raw geometric information into architectural knowledge. The point cloud, inherently non-hierarchical, becomes the basis for a series of drawings that progressively organize and reveal the internal logic of the construction. Rather than imposing predefined categories, the project reads the existing reality through successive approximations, maintaining a close relationship with the material evidence captured in the scan.
This approach is particularly evident in the development of plans. In Mas Bufadors, the building is not represented through a single conventional floor plan but through a sequence of horizontal slices at different levels, corresponding to varying heights within the structure. These plans, defined at levels such as +5, +7, +9, +11, and +13, reconstruct the building progressively, revealing how spaces, walls, and enclosures appear, disappear, or transform across vertical strata. The result is a stratified reading of architecture that reflects its condition as an evolving and partially fragmented system, rather than a fixed and complete object.
A similar logic is applied in the case of Mas Marès, where the documentation is structured through a comprehensive set of drawings that includes plans, transversal sections, longitudinal sections, and elevations. The organization of this material, explicitly indexed within the project documentation, reflects a systematic effort to read the building from multiple complementary perspectives. The plans are developed at different heights, ranging from +1.50 to +7.50 meters, allowing a detailed reconstruction of spatial organization, while maintaining the direct link with the point cloud data from which they are derived.
The sections, both transversal and longitudinal, play a central role in the project. In Mas Marès, an extensive series of sectional cuts is generated across the entire building, effectively producing a continuous reading of the construction and its relationship with the terrain. These sections reveal the adaptation of the architecture to the sloped topography, the thickness and material consistency of the stone walls, and the articulation between different construction phases. At the same time, they make visible processes of degradation, collapse, and transformation, which are integral to the current state of the building.
Within this workflow, BIM is introduced not as a tool for standardization but as a framework for structuring and managing complexity. The transition from LiDAR data to BIM models allows the integration of geometric, material, and interpretative information within a single environment. This makes it possible to organize the building not only in terms of form, but also in terms of constructive logic, phasing, and potential intervention strategies. In this sense, BIM operates as a bridge between documentation and project, enabling the translation of vernacular knowledge into formats that are accessible, analyzable, and potentially actionable.
The LLINDAR project ultimately demonstrates that digital technologies such as LiDAR and BIM can move beyond their conventional roles as tools of representation to become instruments of interpretation. By maintaining fidelity to the complexity of the existing fabric while introducing structured layers of analysis, the work establishes a methodological framework that connects empirical construction knowledge with contemporary design practices. In doing so, it repositions vernacular architecture as an active field of inquiry, capable of informing current approaches to sustainability, territorial integration, and architectural resilience.
The project documentation reveals a highly structured set of plans, where the geometry of the building is rigorously defined through a modular grid system. The foundation plan already integrates this logic, identifying structural walls, load pathways, and dimensional relationships between elements with exact measurements and levels. The use of Ytong masonry is clearly embedded in this structural layer, providing a stable and continuous base onto which lighter systems are later assembled.
Sections play a central role in understanding the project. Longitudinal and transversal cuts describe not only the spatial configuration but also the constructive stratigraphy, from terrain adaptation to roof assembly. The relationship with topography is explicitly modeled, with precise level differences and terrain adjustments that define the building’s implantation. These sections allow the self-builder to read the building as a sequence of layers and heights, rather than as abstract projections.
At the same time, the structural articulation between systems becomes visible in dedicated drawings. The masonry walls, identified with specific typologies, coexist with timber frameworks and lintel systems that resolve openings and load. This layered reading is essential in hybrid construction, where the logic of assembly is not uniform but negotiated between materials.
The BIM model also extends into detailed interior plans, where each space is dimensioned with millimetric precision. Kitchens, living areas, and bedrooms are not only spatially defined but constructed through a sequence of measurable components, allowing a direct translation into on-site execution. This reinforces the idea of the model as a buildable document rather than a descriptive one.
A particularly relevant aspect is the integration of performance data within the model. Envelope systems include quantified layers with associated thermal properties, such as insulation thicknesses and conductivity values. In a system combining masonry and straw, this becomes critical to ensure hygrothermal compatibility and overall energy performance.
The visualizations extracted from the BIM environment complete this system of knowledge. Exterior perspectives situate the building in its environment, showing orientation, solar exposure, and material expression. Interior views, on the other hand, translate the constructive logic into inhabitable space, making visible the continuity between structure, enclosure, and use. These images are not merely illustrative; they act as interpretative tools that allow non-expert actors to anticipate the spatial and material outcome of their work.
In this case study, BIM demonstrates its capacity to manage complexity without losing readability. By integrating masonry precision with the variability of bio-based materials such as straw, the model becomes a shared platform where design, performance, and construction converge. For self-building practices, this is particularly significant: it enables the coordination of hybrid systems while maintaining clarity, supporting a process where different techniques can coexist within a controlled and accessible framework.
